Missionare in Moria
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Szene im Kara Tepe Camp auf Lesvos, Bild: privat
Eine in Griechenland aktive NGO steht seit langem im Verdacht, Flüchtlinge missionieren zu wollen
Seit sie auf den griechischen Inseln auftauchten kam immer wieder der Vorwurf auf, dass es sich bei Eurorelief de facto um evangelikale Missionare handelt. Gegründet wurden sie schließlich von genau solchen in den USA.
Mit Heerscharen von Volunteers verwaltet Eurorelief de facto den Alltag in den RICs, also den unseligen Camps, auf den griechischen Inseln und wer je durch das alte Moria oder das neue Kara Tepe Camp gelaufen ist, stieß überall auf sie.
Dass evangelikale Missionare vielleicht nicht so die beste Adresse sind, um in, hauptsächlichen von Flüchtlingen aus muslimischen Ländern bevölkerten Flüchtlingslagern ihrer Berufung nachzugehen, dürfte eigentlich naheliegen. Tut es aber in Griechenland, wie so vieles andere auch.
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Schon 2018 publizierte der Guardian einen Artikel mit dem vielsagenden Titel: " Aid workers accused of trying to convert Muslim refugees at Greek camp".
Darin heißt es:
Christians working in Greece’s most notorious asylum detention centre have tried to convert some of the Muslim detainees, who have been held under the terms of the EU-Turkey migration deal.
On at least two occasions in recent months, aid workers have distributed conversion forms inside copies of Arabic versions of the St John’s gospel to people held at the Moria detention camp on Lesbos.
The forms, seen by the Guardian, invite asylum seekers to sign a statement declaring the following: “I know I’m a sinner ... I ask Jesus to forgive my sins and grant me eternal life. My desire is to love and obey his word.”
Damals stritt Eurorelief alle Vorwürfe ab, allerdings kamen immer wieder Berichte auf, dass sie natürlich doch weiter machen würden.
Zeitgleich veröffentlichte "Are You Serious" eine Hintergrundrecherche über die Personen hinter Eurorelief und ihre Praktiken.
Eurorelief wurde derweil in den Camps immer wichtiger, zählte Flüchtlinge, stelle Zelte zur Verfügung und wurde zum de facto verlängerten Arm der Campverwaltung:
"However, refugees, frontline volunteers and a former EuroRelief volunteer all tell The New Arab that the group's position as the sole major NGO active in the former military prison has granted the group immense power over refugees' lives.
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EuroRelief allegedly use food, clothes, travel permits - and even access to WiFi - to coerce vulnerable refugees into converting to Christianity. They are also accused of forcing Christian ideology on refugees - even when asked not to, and exploiting refugees through free labour, all while working together with the police and camp guards - becoming complicit in their abusive processes - as the price of continued access to the vulnerable."
Im Kara Tepe Camp sind Eurorelief eine der ganz wenigen verbleibenden NGOs, die eine Genehmigung haben, dort zu arbeiten. Viele der Volunteers, die Jahr für Jahr aus christlichen Kreisen kommen, um ihrer mehr oder minder sinnvolle Tätigkeit nachzugehen, sprechen derweil ganz offen aus, dass es ihnen eigentlich darum geht, Muslime zu bekehren und Eurorelief dafür das Vehikel ist. So schreibt etwa Rebecca Benfield über ihre Erlebnisse auf Lesbos auf der Seite von "Flame":
"The new camp is run by the Greek authorities, UNHCR supply the tents, and the housing is managed by EuroRelief, the NGO wing of Hellenic Ministries, which also enables other mission organisations to operate with them. (...)
With the changes (both quantity and processing time) for the refugees, this has enabled a completely different opportunity to minister, teach and disciple those who are open to the Christian faith, or have bravely made the decision to follow Jesus.
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This was illustrated starkly over the three mornings we spent teaching in the Voice of Truth Centre in Mytilene. (...)
We spent this time teaching the missionaries, mostly from EuroRelief and the Congolese refugee church members.The morning of the first Saturday in our devotions we prayed using Proverbs 18:16 (A gift can open doors; it gives access to important people) over a set of hair clippers we had bough. (...)
One of the teachings that Flame does on mission is into cleansing the land and praying over the land. One evening we went up to a huge hillside plot of land which EuroRelief has bought, which looks across to the previous, and now abandoned, site of Moria. It was hard to comprehend the awfulness of the conditions for the refugees, crammed into such a small area with so little. The prayer of EuroRelief and House of Prayer is that this piece of land can be used to bring blessing and healing to the refugees, the local Greeks and to the hard-working missionaries."
Dies ist nur einer von vielen solchen Berichten, in denen alle darüber berichtet wird, wie man den Menschen auf Lesbos (auch griechisch orthodoxe gelten als unerleuchtet) die frohe Botschaft näher bringen würde.
Schließlich ist die Mutterorganisation von Eurorelief, die Hellenic Ministries, angetreten, um in Griechenland selbst zu missionieren. In ihren eigenen Worten:
"Greece is a nation where the Gospel has been largely forgotten. Spiritual darkness and unbelief are prevalent, and the nation’s devastating financial crisis continues to bring a spirit of despair on many Greeks. Unlike any other European country, the awareness and availability of Scripture in a language they understand is scarce (...) . Not even 1% claim to be born again. This country has a desperate need for the life-giving water of the Gospel. (...) Would you consider joining us in bringing the light of God’s Word to a darkened nation? Each year we trust God to provide an abundance of workers for the harvest to partner with us as we step out in faith and claim this land for Christ."
Update:
In Reaktion auf diesen Beitrag erreichte mich diese Stellungnahme von Eurorelief:
“It is true that in the past some individuals who came in under Eurorelief mixed humanitarian work and mission work in the camp. This should not have happened and these people were sent home as soon as leadership learned about it. Our Code of Conduct as well as our Rules of Engagement are very clear on Eurorelief’s mission being a strictly humanitarian one, and we are very intentional in holding our volunteers accountable in this respect. We are aware of the power imbalance that exists between our workers in camp and the people they serve.
None of the more recent articles that are linked in the text are indicating that anyone was actually (ab)using their access to camp to evangelise, though. And the juxtapositions of “suspicious” connections between our work in camp and the missionary efforts of others, mostly in a different context, are pointless.
We remain always open to a conversation on how we can best keep our professional standards.”
Andrea Wegener for the Eurorelief Team